


this is about

by Snowsheba



Series: thanks, dad. love, hana [9]
Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: As you do, Gen, Siblings, siblings having arguments about greater moral quandaries
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-30
Updated: 2017-05-30
Packaged: 2018-11-07 01:19:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,658
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11048307
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Snowsheba/pseuds/Snowsheba
Summary: nemothesurvivorasked: Pharah finds out that Jesse pointed a gun at Hana. Despite Hana (and potentially others, like Tracer, Zenyatta, and Mercy) trying to stop her, she confronts Jesse about it. Amidst their “discussion,” the conversation turns from Pharah and Jesse arguing the morality of interrogating a fellow teammate to a full blown discussion between whether Overwatch or Blackwatch was the better organization (since Pharah and Jesse are, in some ways, the personifications of OW and BW). After the discussion ends, Jack and Ana comment on how right or wrong Pharah and Jesse are, though they simply talk among themselves and do not offer their opinions to the rest of OW.(takes place sometime before, after, or during ch81 ofthanks, dad. love, hana)





	this is about

**Author's Note:**

> i have siblings and writing this was cathartic in some ways lol

“ _Jesse McCree!_ ”

Jack abruptly stops speaking and glances over to the far side of the dining hall, and Ana follows his gaze to see her daughter stalking towards the man in question. It looks like she’s gearing up for a fight, and when Jack gives a swift glance to her, Ana merely shakes her head and puts an index to her lips. She’s known both of them long enough to trust Fareeha and Jesse to talk it out with words, not fists, and she’s even more curious to see what the discussion is about when Hana darts into the room after her, babbling something at Fareeha and grabbing onto her sleeve, her arm, futilely trying to tug her backwards.

“Ree,” Jesse says, looking entirely nonplussed. Ana watches him sit up, letting the datapad in front of him fall flat onto the table with a clatter. “Hana. What’s up?”

“What’s _up_ is the fact that Hana just told me – ”

“It’s _fine,_ it’s fine, we talked it through already, it’s – ”

“No, Hana, it’s not fine,” Fareeha says, sharp and cold, and Hana falls silent. Jack tenses at the way she seems to fold into herself, just a little, and Ana doesn’t know how the two of them came to know each other so well, but Hana looks over reflexively at him as Fareeha shouts, “You pointed a gun at your own teammate, Jesse! What the hell is wrong with you?”

This isn’t news to Ana – Jack had told her before this – so she only exchanges a glance with him as Hana cuts in again, “Would you listen to me? I am not a child! You don’t need to confront him about this, we – ”

“Nah, it’s okay, darlin’,” Jesse says, holding up a hand, and Hana gives him a peeved look. Fareeha is still glaring expectantly at him, and he says, “She tell you about the circumstances of when that happened, Ree?”

“Yes,” Hana says, exasperated, “Obviously, but – ”

“That doesn’t excuse your actions,” Fareeha hisses. “If you wanted information from your own goddamn teammate, you _don’t shoot them_.”

“I shot him, actually,” Hana says.

“Self-defense, and you didn’t hit him,” Fareeha says harshly, waving a hand, and then, “Explain yourself, Jesse!”

“I never actually did threaten to shoot her beyond vague implications,” Jesse says, and that’s clearly when Hana gives up, turning on her heel and stalking out of the room with a shake of her head. She spares both Jack and Ana a wave before she goes, at least, one that Jack returns with a nod and Ana with a smile, and Jesse goes on, “And anyway, it turned out fine, yeah? Hana can hold her own, I’ll tell ya that.”

“Stop evading the question!”

Jesse raises an eyebrow, tilting his head. “You didn’t _ask_ a question.”

“Do you not understand that what you did was wrong?” Fareeha says without pause, hands fisting at her sides. “You’re just going to sweep it under the rug and say it’s fine because Hana says it’s fine?”

Jesse blinks. “Yeah?”

“In what circumstance do you think it’s actually _fine_ , Jesse?” Fareeha snaps. “She might say so, but in what world would that be true? She trusted you and you _pointed a gun at her_.”

Put like that, it sounds terrible. Jesse is unfazed. “It was unloaded.”

“But how was she supposed to know that? You threatened her, and what if she hadn’t fought back? What if she’d actually told you what you wanted?” Fareeha steps into his space now but he refuses to stand, remaining seated and keeping his body language relaxed and open. _Blackwatch training_ , Ana thinks; she’s done covert ops and stealth missions, but Jesse’s trained under the best. “You would have _scared_ her, Jesse. You would have made her never trust Overwatch as a whole the same way again.”

A good point. Everyone who has answered the recall, and even those who are new, are aware that Hana’s strongest ties are with Jack, and where she goes, Jack follows. The same applies vice versa, even though others have slowly begun building rapport with Hana; if Jesse’s threats had actually worked, it’s doubtful she would let herself grow close to anyone except agents who were not in the previous iteration of Overwatch.

And Jack, obviously. Ana pretends she doesn’t see how tense he is, and privately she’s grateful that he and Hana found each other when they did. They’ve made each other stronger, intentionally or not.

“It was worth that risk,” Jesse says, and now he’s warming up to the argument a little. “One person’s agency versus the knowledge that the old commander was still alive? That meant better leadership, better control, better understanding of how to proceed.”

“You had no idea whether Jack would be willing to do that. – And he isn’t right now, even.” Fareeha lifts a leg to stomp it down on the bench, leaning on her knee as she pushes even further into his space. “And what if he hadn’t been Jack? You’d sacrifice Hana’s well-being for a hunch?”

“Yes,” Jesse says, and Ana knows he’s had to make tougher calls than that. “It mattered to know Morrison’s identity, because Soldier: Seventy-six was an enigma. What if he’d gone rogue? What if Morrison had been compromised? What if he worked with Talon? He put us all in danger, and yes, Ree, I would sacrifice one agent to save the rest in a heartbeat. That’s how it _works_.”

“That’s how it works in _Blackwatch_ ,” Fareeha snarls.

To Jesse’s credit, he doesn’t even blink, and Ana is slightly impressed despite herself. Instead he says, quietly, “That’s how _reality_ works, Ree.”

“Bullshit. You didn’t used to be such a pessimist,” Fareeha says, and Ana thinks, _he’s always been honest and cold-hearted, though, because that’s how you survive the moral quandaries Blackwatch slogged through_.

“Maybe not,” Jesse says, “But that’s how wars are won.”

“We are not at war, Jesse,” Fareeha says; “We are a _team_ , and if we are not a cohesive unit, then we might as well sign our death warrants right here and now, and you would have destroyed that in one fell swoop.”

“With the alternative being never knowing that Jack’s intentions were,” Jesse replies, and he’s kept his voice level and smooth this entire time, no heat whatsoever. “I evaluated the risks, Fareeha. I did what I had to.”

“You didn’t have to do anything,” Fareeha snaps. “You didn’t have to point a gun at a girl who’s spent three years fighting an impossible threat – _you_ , a friend, someone she trusted, didn’t have to threaten harm or worse just to get at what you wanted to know.” A few years ago and Ana knows Fareeha would be punching him; now she only seethes, but it has the same effect, because Jesse is finally starting to look a bit defensive. “You wanted justice? You’re lucky you didn’t send Hana running.”

“Like she’d ever leave Jack’s side,” Jesse scoffs, and he’s evading.

“And Jack would leave with her,” Fareeha spits. “If she truly felt threatened here, there is no doubt, and then we would be down two of our agents and everyone would look at you and not see the amiable cowboy but a killer. Is that what you want?”

“With all due respect,” Jesse says, flat, “They wouldn’t be wrong.”

“Don’t make this about you and your goddamn issues,” Fareeha snarls. “Did you even apologize? Do you even realize how illegal that was? Have you and Hana actually talked about it?”

“Yes, yes, no,” Jesse says dutifully, and now it’s clear he’s just looking to end this discussion as soon as possible. Ana’s not even sure if the pair of them are aware of Jack and herself sitting across the room, silent and stately observers.

“Did you do this all the time in Blackwatch?” Fareeha demands, and when one of her hands reaches out, maybe to grab his serape or something, he bats her away with a well-timed bend of his elbow. “This is how you got information you thought you absolutely needed? Lined up a shot to shoot your friends in the head?”

“Don’t go lecturin’ me about Blackwatch, Ree,” Jesse says, and now he’s gone quiet again. Poking at a soft spot; Ana grimaces when she and Jack exchange yet another glance, and he goes on, “We did what we had to, and sure, I’ll admit there were better ways and I should’ve done what happened with Hana differently, but what’s done is done. Don’t bring up what’s gone.”

“What about Overwatch, huh?” Fareeha says. “Did you not even think of consulting anyone from Overwatch first? Couldn’t have talked to Angela first, or any of the others on the team – ”

“Who do you think got the intel Overwatch used, Fareeha?” Jesse says, and when he sits up tall, Fareeha is not cowed, instead baring her teeth. Their faces are mere inches apart. “If they couldn’t get what they needed, they sent us in, and we did what we fuckin’ had to – ”

“You’re avoiding the entire point, you absolute shithead – ”

“Ask Overwatch? Sure, and do what? Take forever, that’s what, and that’s time wasted, and I’m used to operatin’ alone, and I needed to do it fast because Soldier: Seventy-six might start doin’ shit before we were ready and _yes_ , I was wrong, Fareeha, but – ”

“We don’t have Blackwatch anymore for a goddamn reason!” Fareeha shouts, and now they’re both standing, Fareeha ready to throw a punch, Jesse ready to duck and run, mirroring snarls on their faces, “You’re just so used to ‘operating’ the way you’re used to that you couldn’t accept _change_ and actually ask for help from someone who would have a better way of – ”

“Is that what this is about?” Jesse growled. “This some greater moral discussion about Blackwatch and Overwatch? Because I can tell you now, that ain’t somethin’ you’ll get to talk about so easily – ”

“I’m not here to argue which one is better, are you even _listening_ to what I’m saying – ”

“Because the whole ‘holier-than-thou’ shtick gets old real fuckin’ quick, and I’m not here to rehash what – ”

“I don’t give a shit about any of that right now, the entire point of this discussion is the fact that – ”

“Just drop it, Ree, this ain’t somethin’ that’ll end well for – ”

“ _This is about you holding a gun in Hana’s face and threatening to kill her if she didn’t talk!_ ” Fareeha screams.

Jesse is silent. Fareeha is breathing hard, expression twisted into one of fury, and Ana holds carefully still, as does Jack, as the two stare daggers at each other, one braced for a fight, another braced for a flight.

“I didn’t actually point it at her face,” Jesse says at last. Quiet. Relenting. “Or her at all.”

“Don’t,” Fareeha says, holding up an open palm. “Don’t, Jesse. We all know you could shoot everyone in this room in the time it takes you to blink.”

He sighs. Slowly the tension dissipates, a stream of water slowly flowing down a hill, and he says, “Yeah. I know.”

“You need to make it up to her.”

“And you and I need to talk about Blackwatch,” Jesse says. “You’re old enough by now, anyway.”

“I’ve been old enough for years, asshole,” Fareeha bites back, anger still humming underneath her words. “You’ve just been cagey and avoided me.”

“And you’ve been busy with work, and I’ve been on the run,” Jesse points out, and he narrows his eyes are her. “Stop it, Ree. Let’s just – not do this right now, okay? Take a break, reconvene later to talk and not scream.”

“Only if you apologize to Hana,” Fareeha says. “ _Properly_. Then I’ll get off your back, and then we can argue morals, and then whatever happens, happens. Good enough for you?”

“Ain’t got much of a choice, considerin’,” Jesse says, and there’s a bit of a staring contest until they reach out and shake hands and Ana would laugh if they weren’t grown-ass adults fully capable of hurting each other.

“You’re the absolute worst brother a girl could ask for,” Fareeha grumbles.

“Could’ve told you that myself,” Jesse quips, and there’s no laughter – not yet, the words still fresh and cutting – but she follows him when he goes to the kitchen to put away his dishes, and then out of the dining hall to find Hana, presumably. Neither of them spare Ana or Jack a glance, which doesn’t surprise her. Wouldn’t be the first time they’ve argued in public, though it had been one of the more explosive ones.

“Been a while since I’ve seen Fareeha that worked up,” Jack says after a minute passes in silence.

“Been a while since Jesse’s gotten that defensive,” Ana echoes, and Jack hums in agreement. “Interesting points, though. It isn’t easy to shake off years of training.”

“And Gabe was a very good teacher,” Jack agrees, and they mull on that for a while. It’s true, to say the least; there was a reason he’d been an excellent commander of the strike team that helped end the Omnic crisis, and later the commander of Blackwatch, and that was because of his tactical skill and understanding that there is always a price to be paid. “Guess Fareeha never really had to come to terms with the dichotomy between the two, though.”

“She is military,” Ana says, only to concede, “But Overwatch was another beast entirely.”

“Overwatch couldn’t function without Blackwatch,” Jack says, “But the opposite isn’t true. And not a lot of people recognize that.”

“You didn’t, not for a while,” Ana points out, a hint of a smile on her face.

“But both you and Gabe were pretty damn quick to remind me,” he counters, and they both laugh a little at that, though Jack sobers quickly. “Still, fair points. Blackwatch was blamed for a lot of things, and rightfully so, you know?”

“True,” Ana says. “Gabriel took the fall for all of us.” She frowns at that, suddenly struck with a thought. “You don’t think…”

“What?” Jack says.

“Gabriel took the fall for all of us,” Ana repeats slowly, and then, “You, McCree, Genji, everyone in Blackwatch and most of the people in Overwatch.” She shakes her head. “Perhaps I’m thinking too much into this, but I wonder. It was obvious Overwatch was going to fall near the end, no?”

“Yeah,” Jack says, and then, drawing the same connection as she had, “You don’t think Gabriel really did have something to do with it?”

“Not in the way the public thinks,” Ana says; “What if he’d done it on purpose? Keep everyone’s names clean but his? Ensure you survived, and wipe the slate completely clean?”

Jack purses his lips. “I wouldn’t put it past him to martyr himself like that. And he always did like philosophy. Poems.”

“We’ll never really know unless he tells us,” Ana says with a sigh. “And that’s not likely to happen.”

“Maybe we’ll get lucky,” Jack says quietly, and finally takes a sip from his forgotten cup of coffee. Ana’s tea has long since grown cold, and she leaves it untouched for now.

“Don’t get your hopes up, Jack,” Ana says. He grunts in assent, returning to the datapad on the table, and Ana closes her eyes and shakes her head. It doesn’t really matter now – what’s done is done. There’s a vague sense of curiosity, though, and eventually she asks, “Do you think Jesse was right?”

“About what?” Jack says, flicking idly at the datapad.

“About Blackwatch. About Overwatch. How the methods used were necessary.”

Jack is silent for a few moments. “Maybe,” he says at last. “Gabe always thought so.”

“And you trusted him.” Jack nods, and Ana can accept that. “As did I. I suppose we’ll never know.”

“Philosophy is not my strong suit,” Jack agrees, and she has to laugh at that as she stands up to get herself a fresh cup of warm tea.

**Author's Note:**

> come find me on [tumblr](http://snowsheba.tumblr.com/)!


End file.
